The American Yawp Chapter 22: The New Era

Overview of the New Era

• The 1920s, known as the Roaring ‘20s, marked significant social, economic, and political change in the United States.

• This decade followed the recessions of 1921 and 1922.

• The era is characterized by cultural conflict and economic acceleration.

Cultural Icons and Heroes

Charles Lindbergh

• Historic Flight: On May 21, 1927, completed the first nonstop solo flight from New York to Paris in 33 hours.

• Symbolism: Represented hope, individual effort, and technological advancement post-World War I.

• Impact on Society: Restored faith in American ingenuity and technological progress.

Economic Expansion

Post-War Economic Growth

• Manufacturing Surge: Manufacturing rose by 60% during the 1920s.

• Income Growth: Incomes increased by 33% with minimal inflation.

Innovations and Technologies

• Explosion of the automobile industry boosted related sectors (rubber, road construction, oil).

• Communication Evolves: Shortwave radio became prevalent, along with accelerated mail delivery and commercialized train travel.

• Widespread adoption of electricity, home appliances, nylon, plastic, and telephones by the end of the decade.

• Early computational technology developed, including analog calculators capable of handling 11-digit numbers.

Labor Dynamics

Changes in the Workforce

• Consolidation of businesses and intensified competition.

• Rise of “welfare capitalism” by employers aimed at pacifying workers and preventing grievances.

• Struggles for Unionization: A decline in union membership marked the 1920s due to open shop policies.

Women's Workforce Participation

• Expansion into 'pink-collar' jobs, predominantly secretarial and non-manual service roles.

• National unions largely excluded women and minority workers.

• Increased participation of Asian and Hispanic individuals in the labor force.

Agricultural Changes

Technological Advances in Farming

• Tractor Adoption: Quadrupled in the 1920s, enabling cultivation of 35 million additional acres.

• Introduction of hybrid crops, such as corn, in the early 1920s.

Economic Challenges

• Productivity outpaced demand; farmers sought government relief through pricing schemes (e.g., parity).

• President Calvin Coolidge twice vetoed proposed parity legislation.

Rise of Consumer Culture

Changing Spending Habits

• Shift towards buying for convenience and pleasure due to aggressive advertising and innovative products.

• Growth of department stores symbolizing consumerism; rise in sales of household appliances, clothing, and automobiles.

Advertising and Media

• Rapid growth of the advertising industry; national newspapers and magazines emerged.

• The introduction of sound in films (1927), increasing cinema attendance to over 100 million by 1930.

Shifts in Gender Roles

Redefined Womanhood

• Emerging cultural icon: the "flapper"—modern women challenging traditional norms through their behavior, dress, and lifestyle choices.

• Involvement in social changes such as birth control advocacy.

Literary and Cultural Movements

Disenchantment and the Lost Generation

• Young artists and intellectuals, disaffected by World War I, formed the Lost Generation, critiquing materialism.

• Key figures included Ezra Pound, T.S. Eliot, Faulkner, and Hemingway.

Harlem Renaissance

• An explosion of African American culture in the arts and literature, contributing to the era's diversity.

• F. Scott Fitzgerald critiqued American materialism in his novel The Great Gatsby (1925).

Traditional Resistance

Prohibition and Traditionalist Responses

• Growing hostility toward modernization manifested in Prohibition (1919-1933), viewed as a defense against perceived moral decay.

• The resurgence of the Ku Klux Klan, now targeting not only African Americans but also Jews, Catholics, and immigrants.

Religious Divides

• Tension between modernists advocating for scientific integration into religious practice and fundamentalists upholding literal biblical interpretations.

• The Scopes Trial (1925): A landmark case challenging anti-evolution laws, culminating in a public trial that highlighted the cultural clash.

Political Landscape

Republican Dominance

• The Democratic Party fractured during the divisive conventions of 1924 and 1928, leading to losses against Republican candidates.

• Warren G. Harding (elected 1920) and Calvin Coolidge (succeeded Harding) favored minimal government intervention and tax reductions.

• Herbert Hoover's Presidency: Echoed Coolidge's policies but soon faced the onset of the Great Depression, marking a dramatic downturn in the previously optimistic economic climate.